Verbs followed by -ing or the infinitive
A regra
Verb patterns describe whether a verb requires a gerund, a to-infinitive, a bare infinitive, or an object pronoun.
In English grammar, a verb pattern describes the syntactic structure that a governing verb demands when it connects to complements, objects, and subsequent verbs. Mastering these patterns is essential for sentence fluency at Level B1. Five Major Verb Complementation Patterns: (1) Verb + To-Infinitive: Verbs of decision, intention, and planning take to + base verb: decide, hope, manage, offer, plan, promise, refuse, agree, afford ("We decided to purchase the tickets", "She managed to solve the problem"). (2) Verb + Object + To-Infinitive: Verbs of communication, instruction, and influence require a personal object before the infinitive: tell, ask, remind, warn, encourage, persuade, invite, advise, expect ("She reminded me to lock the door", "The doctor advised him to rest"). (3) Verb + Gerund (-ing): Verbs of feeling, enjoyment, and avoidance take -ing: enjoy, avoid, consider, fancy, finish, imagine, suggest, practice, spend time ("I enjoy working in the garden", "Avoid driving during the blizzard"). (4) Verb + Preposition + Gerund: When a verb connects via a preposition, the following verb is always an -ing gerund: apologize for, insist on, look forward to, succeed in, think of ("She apologized for arriving late", "I look forward to hearing from you"). (5) Verb + Bare Infinitive (Without To): Causative and permissive verbs let and make take an object followed by the bare infinitive: "She let me borrow her car", "He made us laugh heartily".
Lembre-se
- Verb plus object plus infinitive: she asked me to help her, they encouraged him to apply.
- Verb plus bare infinitive: let and make take no to: she let us leave early, he made me laugh.
- Prepositional verbs take gerunds: they insisted on paying, she apologized for being late.
Armadilha Comum a Evitar
Make and let do not take to in active sentences: say he made me wait twenty minutes, never he made me to wait.
Guía visual
How to read this B1 topic
At B1, grammar links ideas: condition, result, reported meaning, experience, and narrative order.
1. Name the relationship
Ask whether the sentence gives a condition, contrast, cause, report, or result.
If it rains, we will stay home.
2. Separate time from aspect
Finished event, visible result, duration, and background action use different forms.
I had left before she arrived.
3. Test both clauses
In complex sentences, the second half often proves the first half.
I wish I knew.
Decision path before answering
Use these checks before choosing between close options.
- 1Mark the subject, main verb, object, and any connector.
- 2Underline the time expression or discourse clue.
- 3Reject any option with the wrong agreement, tense, article, pronoun case, or word order.
- 4Read the whole sentence once more for naturalness and register.
Contrasts that often decide the answer
Event or background
Simple forms move events forward; continuous forms show an action in progress.
I left while she was talking.
Fact or stance
Modals, hedges, and reporting structures show how certain or responsible the speaker sounds.
This may indicate a problem.
Clause or compressed phrase
Advanced writing often compresses full clauses into participle, noun, or prepositional phrases.
Having reviewed the data, we revised the plan.
Exemplos
- 1The project supervisor reminded everyone to submit their reports by noon.
- 2We decided to book a quiet seaside cottage for our summer holiday in Devon.
- 3My parents always encouraged me to pursue my passion for digital illustration.
- 4The strict librarian made the energetic children sit quietly at the study table.
- 5She avoided discussing the sensitive financial disagreement during the meeting.
- 6David offered to drive his elderly neighbours to the central community clinic.
- 7We are all looking forward to celebrating our graduation ceremony together.
- 8He managed to pass his rigorous aviation licensing exam on his first attempt.
- 9The police officer warned the speeding motorist to slow down on the wet road.
- 10Please let me explain the logical reasoning behind our committee's decision.
Exceções
Let and Make Drop To in Active Voice: Active sentences with let and make NEVER take to: say "He made me laugh", never "He made me to laugh". Exception in the Passive: When make is converted into the passive, it takes the to-infinitive: "I was made to wait for an hour". Help is Flexible: Help can take either the bare infinitive or the to-infinitive: "She helped me carry the bags" or "She helped me to carry the bags".
Erros frequentes
(1) Adding to after make or let: "The teacher made us to rewrite the essay." → "The teacher made us rewrite the essay." (Active make takes bare infinitive). (2) Omitting personal object with tell/remind: "She reminded to call." → "She reminded me to call." (These verbs require an explicit object). (3) Base verb after prepositions: "He insisted on pay." → "He insisted on paying." (Prepositions require gerunds).
Teste-se
Write six sentences using tell, remind, encourage, make, let, and look forward to with correct complements, then practise.
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